Giving birth in Greece and Greek citizenship by birth

Legal grounds for citizenship

Who can obtain citizenship:

• People born to at least one Greek citizen.
• People born in Greece to foreign parents - provided a parent has lived in the country lawfully for at least 5 years before the child was born.
• A child born in Greece who attends a Greek school and has lived in the country for a set period of time.

Citizenship for the parents

The birth gives the parents neither citizenship nor residence: while the child is still a foreigner, no status can be obtained through the child. You live in the country on your own residence permit, for example a Greek residence permit by investment or a residence permit for digital nomads. You can apply for citizenship after 7 years of lawful residence (Article 5 of the Citizenship Code, Law 3284/2004), if by then you hold a permit from the list in the law: an investment permit, long-term resident status or another listed type. With other residence permits the wait is 12 years.

Siblings and other relatives

Brothers and sisters of a child who is a Greek citizen can obtain citizenship if the conditions are met (residence and schooling in the country). Close relatives can get a residence permit through family reunification and apply for citizenship after 7 years.

How to enter the country to give birth

Citizens of countries without visa-free access, including Russia, need a Schengen visa to enter. To legalize their stay in Greece, foreigners can buy property for a residence permit: the usual threshold is $450,000 (400,000 euros), $899,000 (800,000 euros) in Attica including Athens, Thessaloniki, Mykonos, Santorini and the larger islands, and $281,000 (250,000 euros) only when converting commercial property into housing, apply for the residence permit for financially independent people with an income from $3,940 (3,500 euros) per month, enroll in a study program, take a job with a Greek company or use family reunification.

How the child gets citizenship: three routes

• School plus the parent's residence. The child was born in Greece, started first grade at a Greek primary school and keeps studying, and one parent lived in the country lawfully for 5 consecutive years before the birth. The parents file a joint application and declaration while the child is a minor.
• The parent's residence later. If the parent did not have 5 years at the birth, the right arises once their residence reaches 10 years.
• Schooling. A child who has completed 9 grades of Greek school or 6 grades of secondary school in Greece can also claim citizenship by application. If schooling ended after 18, the application can be filed within 3 years.

The application goes to the citizenship office for the place of residence. Processing takes 6 to 18 months, up to 2 years in complex cases.

A family plan: from residence permit to passport, year by year

The Greek route is a marathon, not a sprint: between the parents' first residence permit and the child's passport there are 6-7 years, and the parents get citizenship at about the same time. Below is a typical timeline for a family that moves before the child is born.

If the child is born before a parent has 5 years, the right arises once the parent reaches 10 years. In practice many families get the child's citizenship together with their own naturalisation: unmarried minor children become Greek together with the naturalised parent.

Which residence permit parents should choose

Everything else depends on the parents' residence permit: whether the years count towards naturalisation, whether you can work, and how quickly the 5 years the child needs build up. A mistake here costs years, not money.

Naturalisation after 7 years requires a permit from the statutory list at the time of application, so by the seventh year many switch to long-term resident status. Retirees should also read retiring in Greece.

Requirements for parents: exam, language and documents

To naturalise, parents sit a written exam, which replaced the interview in 2021. It tests Greek at threshold level, history, geography and how Greece works, and the pass certificate is attached to the application.

• Residence. 7 years of legal residence before applying, with a permit from the statutory list at the time of application, otherwise the period grows to 12 years.
• Exam. A fee of about $170, held at accredited centres several times a year; people over 67 take it orally.
• Integration. Tax returns, work or lawful income, a home in Greece and no serious criminal record.
• Application. A state fee of about $620; the file goes to the citizenship office for your area, and the minister decides.

Greece allows dual citizenship, so you keep your current passport. Your current country sets its own rules on reporting or holding a second passport, so check them before applying. The cost of the whole route is in how much Greek citizenship costs.

Documents for the child's application

• the birth certificate from the municipal registry, where the birth is registered within 10 days;
• a school certificate of enrolment in first grade and continued study;
• the parents' residence permits and proof of 5 years of lawful residence before the birth;
• the parents' and child's passports;
• a joint application and declaration by both parents.

Foreign documents need an apostille and a certified Greek translation. Start collecting the file six months before applying.

How to apply for the child's citizenship: steps

1. Check the residence period. Before applying, the continuity of the parent's permits over the 5 years before the birth, or 10 years at the date of application, is checked: the dates of every card and renewal decision.
2. School certificate. The school confirms enrolment in first grade and continued study.
3. Joint application. Both parents sign the application and declaration; if they live apart, the other parent's consent or a court custody order is needed.
4. Filing. The file goes to the citizenship office for your area, with translations and apostilles of foreign documents prepared in advance.
5. Decision and registration. After a positive decision the child is entered in the municipal register of citizens and gets a Greek ID card and passport.

Allow from 8 months to 2 years for the whole route from gathering documents to the passport. Professional support removes the main risk - a refusal over a single missed date in the residence history.

Giving birth in Greece: hospitals, documents and insurance

Most foreign mothers give birth in private clinics in Athens and Thessaloniki: staff speak English, there are private rooms and a clear estimate. Public hospitals also accept foreigners, but without Greek insurance you are billed in full.

• Parents need private health insurance for their residence permits, and its pregnancy and birth terms should be checked in advance: many policies cover birth only after a waiting period.
• The birth is registered with the municipal registry within 10 days, after which the child gets a passport of the parents' country and a Greek family reunification permit.
• If one parent is a Greek citizen, the child is Greek from birth and gets a passport straight away.

Until the child becomes a citizen, its permit is renewed together with the parents'. A missed renewal for the child is a common mistake that later complicates the citizenship application.

The child's school and language

The child's right to citizenship is tied to a Greek school: public or private, but following the Greek curriculum. Children start first grade at 6, and public schools are free and teach in Greek.

International schools teaching in English are more convenient for families unsure whether they will stay, but their pupils do not gain the right to citizenship through school. If the plan is a Greek passport for the child, choose a Greek school and keep up the second language at home or in extra classes from the first year.

Parents need Greek too: the naturalisation exam tests threshold level, and without the language it is hard to deal with the school and authorities. Courses for foreigners are run by universities and municipal centres, and it is best to start in the first year after the move.

Costs item by item

• birth in a private hospital: $3,400-7,900 (3,000-7,000 euros), more in Athens, for a caesarean or a private room;
• a Schengen visa to enter: required for citizens of countries without visa-free access;
• the parents' residence permit: the golden visa from $450,000 (400,000 euros) in most regions and from $899,000 (800,000 euros) in Athens, Thessaloniki and popular islands; for financially independent persons, income from $3,940 (3,500 euros) a month;
• a child's passport: about $80 (71 euros);
• the parents' naturalisation after 7 years: a $618 (550 euros) fee and a $169 (150 euros) language and history exam.

Exchange rate: $1.12 per euro on 20 October 2026. Our support fee is on request from a manager.

Family taxes after the move

You become a Greek tax resident after 183 days in the country in a year. Income tax rates go up to 44%. New residents have incentives: a flat $113,000 (100,000 euros) a year on foreign income with an investment from $562,000 (500,000 euros) in Greece, 7% on a foreign pension for 15 years, and a 50% cut in tax on employment income for 7 years for people who move to work. More on the Taxes in Greece page.

Families with children have it easier in Greece: the income tax credit grows with the number of children, so a parent with two children pays less than a single worker on the same salary. Credits and deductions are calculated in the annual return filed in spring.

Pitfalls: military service, gaps and taxes

• Military service. Greece has compulsory service for men. A son who acquires Greek citizenship becomes liable for it; the law allows deferral for those living permanently abroad, but plan this in advance.
• Gaps in legal residence. One expired permit resets the continuous period both for the child and for the parents' naturalisation.
• School. The child's right is tied to a Greek school: switching to an international school or moving away before applying can remove it.
• Taxes. A family living in Greece for more than 183 days a year becomes tax resident, and rates reach 44%. Preferential regimes for new residents must be claimed in the first year.

How to get approved the first time

Refusals and returned files come from a few repeat mistakes:

• a gap in the parent's lawful residence: an expired permit breaks the continuous 5 years;
• the child no longer attends a Greek school by the time of the decision;
• an incomplete file or uncertified translations.

Another common reason is names spelled differently across documents from different countries: the child's surname on the birth certificate, passport and school papers must match letter for letter. Expired certificates and uncertified translations send the file back for correction, and processing starts again.

Comparison with other countries for giving birth

If the child needs a passport at birth, Greece does not fit: Canada or Argentina are closer. Greece suits a family that already lives there and plans a Greek school.

Who Greek citizenship through a child's birth suits

Greece suits families who already plan to live in the European Union for 7-10 years, want a Greek school and are ready to learn the language. For them a birth in the country is an extra step towards a passport, not a separate strategy.

It does not suit those seeking a passport for the child right after birth or not planning to live in Greece permanently: without a parent's 5 years of legal residence and a Greek school there is no citizenship. For a quick result look at birthright countries - Argentina or Canada.

An overview of the country is on Greece, life in the capital in our Athens guide, the budget in cost of living in Greece, and property-based residence in Greek residence through property.

Buying a home that becomes both the basis for residence and the family's home is covered in buying an apartment in Greece.

Benefits of a Greek passport

How to get Greek citizenship by birth: step by step

FAQ

Where you can travel visa-free with a Greek passport